May 30, 2014: Toledo’s mayor and police chief talked about the
city’s latest crime-fighting efforts and the public perception
of the city as a crime-ridden community during a Friday morning
media session at the downtown branch of the Toledo-Lucas
County Public Library.

In what could be termed a unique combination of data-driven
crime-fighting and old-fashioned, beat-based, neighborhood
policing, the mayor and police department administrators both
emphasized the need to establish trust and get help from
citizens.

“Law enforcement is not the only answer. It has to be people and
police working together,” said Mayor D. Michael Collins,
who emphasized his two most important priorities are the safety
and condition of Toledo’s neighborhoods.

68 cadets recently graduated the police academy and took to the
streets with their training officers. Once they can go it alone,
the mayor stated the police department would focus on what he
called “beat integrity.” Under the plan, a police officer
would be assigned with a building inspector or code enforcement
inspector working an assigned sector of the city. Such an
effort, he said, “would clean up the city block-by-block.”

Mayor Collins told the audience that the reopening of the
Northwest District police station already is paying
dividends. The department’s traffic and special victims units
have relocated to the facility. Two of the officers assigned to
that area are walking the Sylvania Ave. corridor, introducing
themselves to business owners and speaking with students on
their way to and from Start High School. Police bike
patrols will travel through that area this summer.

“I think that’s the true test of modern policing—when neighbors
know that there are officers available—and there’s camaraderie
and a trust,” said the mayor. “That trust is really important.
That’s what we have to rebuild in Toledo is that trust.”

“They’re taking minor complaints. They’re dealing with issues
such as loitering. They’re passing along information to
vice-narcotics and the gang unit,” said Police Chief William
Moton. “So far it seems to be well-received. That’s coming
along because they’re building a relationship with the
community.”

Chief Moton stated the police department has expanded its number
of community service officers from three to nine. The effort is
part of the mayor’s “Tidy Town” initiative.

“We’re starting to work with other departments and dealing with
the blight,” he said. “We’re taking criminal complaints and
teaming up with other departments in the city and working with
them.”

One of those community services officers is Officer Dana Slay,
a 20-year veteran who now works a sector that encompasses the
Alexis-Lewis-Jackman Road area. Officer Slay spoke of a recent
success with Tidy Towns, along Upton Ave. between Bancroft and
Dorr, where trees were recently cleared to make the homes and
street more visible and safer in response to citizen input.

“Let us know as Blockwatch what you need. If you’ve got
dumping in an alley or overgrown trees, let us know,” she
encouraged. “Help us to clean that out, so that when crime does
occur in your neighborhood, you can see it and therefore, report
it. We don’t know unless you tell us.”

Officer Slay emphasized there are ways people can report crimes
without jeopardizing their personal safety or becoming a victim
themselves. Not only can people call Crimestoppers at
419-255-1111 or 911 and remain anonymous, they can
now pass along information through the department’s Facebook
page and other social media.

“A lot of people don’t go to Blockwatch until something
happens—and then they’re running in and they have so much to
say. But where were you at a year ago, two years ago?” she
questioned. “We need your input. Open your eyes. Open your ears.
Blockwatch is everybody’s business, even if it doesn’t
involve you.”

The police chief spoke of the continued development of
“data-driven intelligence” where crime analysts can provide a
“prediction of when the next crimes will take place.” That
information is passed along to field commanders who can place
officers accordingly. The police department also is in the
second and final phase of placing crime cameras across the city,
which will eventually number approximately 150.

“We can respond much quicker,” he said. “This is a step-by-step
process. We want to do it as quickly as possible, but we want to
make sure what we’re doing is sound.”

But that effort continues to build, mindful of its ability to
become interactive with Toledo residents. To that end, the
police department recently released an interactive crime mapping
tool at the website
at: crimemap.toledo.oh.gov

Capt. Mike Troendle,
who heads the department’s strategic response bureau, gave a
brief demonstration. The crime mapping tool is based on software
the department already was using, allowing individual officers
to “drill down into their beats” and identify crime “hot spots,”
he explained. By being able to pinpoint where crime is occurring
in such a manner, manpower can be increased in those
neighborhoods and “predict” where and when similar events will
happen.

“This allows you to see what’s happening in your neighborhood
and then to help us by providing information on the crime you’re
seeing,” said Capt. Troendle, who showed a feature that allows
citizens to provide tips to police directly through the mapping
tool.

One example he used was a burglary that may have occurred down
the street, which prompts a homeowner to recall a strange car in
the neighborhood around the same time. That person could provide
a license plate number anonymously through a web tip, “which
gives us a critical piece of information,” he said.

During the demonstration, one such crime “hot spot” that was
identified is the Green Belt Place Apartments, just north
of downtown Toledo.

Citizens can track crimes within a half-mile radius of a given
address—even going back as far as three months to see, in
general, what has been occurring. That raises the general
awareness of home and business owners, as well as to keep a
closer eye on the situation. The mapping tool allows the user to
differentiate between violent and property crimes.

The user also can sign up for email alerts when a crime occurs
in their neighborhood. The system updates three times each day:
6 a.m., 2 p.m., and 10 p.m., which coincides with police shift
changes. Capt. Troendle stated citizens have requested an app
for smartphones and other mobile devices, which is being
developed for future release.

During a question-and-answer period, police administrators
explained that they are expanding the use of the Real Time
Crime Center, where four daytime shift officers began
monitoring the city’s crime cameras. Now civilian analysts are
being hired to work within the center on other shifts, a move
which police say has helped real-time response.

The open discussion was labeled “Building Safer Communities”
and was sponsored by the Toledo Press Club. Members of
the public were invited to attend. Some in the audience praised
the police for being more open to partnering with the public,
especially at the more than 2,700 Lucas Metropolitan Housing
Agency (LMHA) sites that span the city. But one young man in
the audience questioned the need for so many crime cameras,
particularly the ones being deployed in what he labeled “nicer
areas.”

“Are we being protected or are we being stalked?” asked the
young man, protesting that his Fourth Amendment rights were
being violated.

The particular camera in question is one that was recently
installed near Heatherdowns Blvd. and Key St. Police
administrators explained that car break-ins are a common problem
in apartment complexes in that area, so the camera is in place
to catch those responsible and deter future thefts.

“We’re responsible for every part of Toledo, not just the
central city or not just where people think are the most
crime-ridden areas,” said Capt. Troendle. “Every part of this
city deserves protection.”